The Public Finance Management Enhancement Project (PFMEP) that is spearheading expansion reforms on the current PFMS system under Component 1 has achieved some major milestones to date. The Government of Zimbabwe is implementing the PFMEP project with support from Donor partners. The project commenced in June 2016 and with an original deadline of 31 March 2020. However, due to some delays in other critical deliverables and scope magnitude, the Government of Zimbabwe and the Donor Partners are considering extending the Project to the end of December 2020. This will allow for the completion and commissioning of all outstanding deliverables.

The Transitional Stabilisation Programme (TSP) launched on 5 October 2018, marked the commencement of a development journey towards attainment of the country’s Vision 2030, is coming to an end in December 2020.

In December 2019, Government introduced a roller meal subsidy pegged at ZWL$50 per 10kg bag in order to protect the vulnerable groups.

However, the wide gap between the market and the subsidised price has created undesirable arbitrage opportunities for unscrupulous players, resulting in the market and supply distortions.

In view of the above, I am pleased to announce that Government has reviewed upwards the subsidised price from ZWL$50 to ZWL$70 per 10kg bag of roller meal against the prevailing market price of the product.

Implementation of the new subsidy price is with immediate effect.

Government will announce a strengthened targeting system in due course such that deserving vulnerable citizens as intended by the subsidy policy benefit.

The month on month inflation rate in January 2020 was 2.23 percent shedding 14.32 percentage points on the December 2019 rate of 16.55 percent. This means that prices as measured by the all items CPI increased by an average rate of 2.23 percent from December 2019 to January 2020.

On 1 July 2019, on the invitation of the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Budget Finance and Economic Development, the Minister Hon. Prof. Mthuli Ncube met with Parliamentarians to brief them on the Statutory Instrument 142 of 2019 on Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe regulations and the implementation mechanisms.